Green Mango Chutney

I used to work with a Keralite driver called Ashraf, a most excellent and highly resourceful fellow, too. Every time he came back from leave he’d bring a little something from home. And then one day he pitched up at the front door carrying a small biohazard container with Mrs Ashraf’s chutney in it. It goes something like this:

Ingredients

• 4 green mangoes peeled and finely sliced
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 dried whole chillies
• 1 tbsp raisins
• 1/2” piece fresh ginger, diced
• 1 tsp onion seeds
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sunflower oil

Cut the mango slices in quarters lengthways. Heat the oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds: as soon as they start to pop drop in the mango slices, stirring to coat and sizzle for a while. Add 2 cups of water along with the sugar, ginger, raisins, red chillies, onion seeds and salt. When the mango pieces are softened and the sauce starts to thicken, remove from the heat to cool and bottle. Serve cold. This chutney will keep up to six months if bottled in a well sterilised lidded container.